Uthiyan Cheralathan ("Perum Chottu Uthiyan") is earliest known Chera ruler of

early Early may refer to: History * The beginning or oldest part of a defined historical period, as opposed to middle or late periods, e.g.: ** Early Christianity ** Early modern Europe Places in the United States * Early, Iowa * Early, Texas * Early ...

historic Kerala (c. 1st - 4th century CE) from available literary sources. He had his headquarters at a place called Kuzhumur in

Kuttanad Kuttanad ( ml, കുട്ടനാട്‌) is a region covering the Alappuzha, Kottayam and Pathanamthitta Districts, in the state of Kerala, India, well known for its vast paddy fields and geographical peculiarities. The region has the lo ...

(southern

Kerala Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South Ca ...

). His lifetime was in the late first and early second century CE (he died in 130 after a battle with Karikala Chola). His consort was Veliyan Nallini, the daughter of Veliyan chief Venman. Uthiyan Cheralatan assumed the title "''Vanavaramban''" which could either mean "One whose Kingdom Reaches up to the Sky" (''vana'' means sky and ''varambu'' means limit, in

Old Malayalam Old Malayalam, inscriptional language found in Kerala from ''c.'' 9th to ''c.'' 13th century AD, is the earliest attested form of Malayalam. The language was employed in several official records and transactions (at the level of the Chera Peruma ...

) or "the One who is Loved by the Gods". The latter title was previously adopted by the

Maurya The Maurya Empire, or the Mauryan Empire, was a geographically extensive Iron Age historical power in the Indian subcontinent based in Magadha, having been founded by Chandragupta Maurya in 322 BCE, and existing in loose-knit fashion until 1 ...

emperor

Asoka Ashoka (, ; also ''Asoka''; 304 – 232 BCE), popularly known as Ashoka the Great, was the third emperor of the Maurya Empire of Indian subcontinent during to 232 BCE. His empire covered a large part of the Indian subcontinent, s ...

. Uthiyan's elephant corps and cavalry forces are particularly praised in the early Sangham literature. He went into several battles and in the battle of Venni (Vennil) with Karikala Chola, he was wounded on the back while leading the warriors (Akam 55). Being unable to bear the disgrace he committed suicide by slow starvation ''(vadakkirikkal)''. It is said that some of his "Companions" also committed suicide with him nwilling to part him(Akam 55). Uthiyan Cheralatan was succeeded by his son, Nedum Cheralathan.Kankasabhai, V., ''The Tamil Eighteen Hundred Years Ago.'' New Delhi: Asian Educational Services, 1904. 90.

Notes

References

* People of the Chera kingdom 2nd-century Indian monarchs Chera kings {{India-royal-stub